Top 5 Books to Read this Summer
Summer is here! Whether you are sitting outside after church enjoying the afternoon sun or have a few extra moments in your evening before bed, there is no better time to read a book than in the summer. Summer is also the season where we can slow down and take much needed time to refocus our lives on God and His Word.
Here you can find our CLC booklist to read this summer, written by authors who love God’s sunny season as much as we do. From best-sellers to new releases, we hope you find something that catches your eye.
1. Amazing Love – Corrie ten Boom
Description: Following her miraculous release from a Nazi concentration camp, Corrie ten Boom refused to give into the weakness of anger, claiming, “Forgiveness requires more strength than hatred.” Sharing incredible stories of encounters with people from all walks of life, Corrie illustrates how a childlike faith in the wisdom and love of God pushes us to forgive the seemingly impossible.
About the Author: It is hard to overestimate the impact of the life of Corrie ten Boom. She and her family risked their lives by hiding Jews in occupied Holland during World War II. Arrested by the Gestapo and sent to Ravensbruck, the notorious Nazi concentration camp, she found for herself the victory that overcomes the world. After being miraculously released, Corrie began an international ministry of writing and speaking. Her extensive traveling to share Christ and counsel the hurting made her a worldwide witness, or, as she put it, a “tramp for the Lord.” Corrie died in 1983, on her 91st birthday.
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2. Just Say Father – Fred A. Hartley III
Description: Fred Hartley opens up the depths of the name Father—the name God chose for Himself so that He could include ordinary people like you and me in His ever-expanding family. Father is the wading-in point in the ocean of prayer, but it is also the Mariana trench—the deepest point you will ever go in prayer is Father. No matter where you are in your Father journey, Just Say Father will validate your heart and encourage you in your quest. Low self-esteem and superficiality are some of the curses of our age—Father is the cure.
About the Author: Fred A. Hartley III is lead pastor of a dynamically unique congregation in Northeast Atlanta where he began ministry in 1988. Lilburn Alliance Church now has members who were born in sixty-four different nations of the world. He is the founder and president of the College of Prayer with 194,000 campuses in 103 countries serving more than 15 million leaders worldwide. Fred has published more than twenty books, including his most recent titles The Seven Wounds of Christ, God on Fire, and Ignite. Leading people to an encounter with the manifest presence of Christ is his life’s passion. He also enjoys running, golf, and playing with his grandchildren.
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3. The Calvary Road – Roy Hession
Description: Do you long for revival and power in your life? Learn how Jesus can fill you with His spirit through brokenness, repentance, and confession in this updated version of Hession’s classic, The Calvary Road. In the course of eleven chapters, Hession emphasizes the need for personal revival in life with Christ.
About the Author: Roy Hession, a successful evangelist in England, knew he had lost the power of the Spirit in his life – a terrible feeling as he led his evangelistic campaigns. In 1947, Hession met leaders of the East African Church which was then experiencing a sweeping revival, and recognized his deep personal need. It was like starting the Christian life over as he came humbly to the Cross. The principles which the Lord taught him were first published in 1950 as The Calvary Road and are now available in over 70 languages. Hession’s other titles include We Would See Jesus, Be Filled Now, and many others.
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4. Holy Desperation – Vance Havner
Description: “Every one of the great heroes of faith were desperate people,” Vance Havner reminds us. “Daniel in the lion’s den, the Hebrew children in the fiery furnace, Elijah and Isaiah, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus, the disciples in the storm, Jacob at Jabbok, Moses at the Red Sea, David facing Goliath, the four lepers at the gate of Samaria—every one of them on the spot, desperate.” God delights in blessing those who are desperate for Him. When we feel far from God and need a fresh touch from Him, when we want to obey Him more than anything else, we are becoming desperate. And when we desperately need God and want God more than anything else—we will find Him and be blessed.
About the Author: From a humble beginning in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, Vance Havner was called to preach. Licensed at twelve and ordained at fifteen, he preached all over America. Havner became one of the best-loved and renowned revivalists of the twentieth century. His home-spun storytelling, quick wit and powerful Christ centered preaching made him a favorite preacher for over seventy years. Billy Graham called him the most quoted preacher in America and said that Vance “used the Word of God like a sword. You pick any one of his books and you could sense the presence and power of the Holy Spirit leaping off those pages.”
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5. He’s Still on the Throne – Stuart Briscoe
Description: Woven throughout with rich insights from First Peter, Stuart Briscoe’s He’s still on the Throne will help you find answers during life’s challenging moments. Taking a positive, humorous, and intensely practical approach, Stuart gives clues on finding joy in suffering for Christ, discovering peace in the midst of conflict, and growing as a Christian in the midst of deceit and hypocrisy.
About the Author: Stuart Briscoe was born in the north of England in 1930. After leaving school he embarked on a banking career and served in the Royal Marines during the Korean War. He preached his first sermon at seventeen years of age; since that time, he has ministered on every continent, written more than forty books, pastored a church for thirty years and founded a worldwide media ministry called Telling the Truth. He has been married to Jill for more than fifty-five years and has three children and thirteen grandchildren.
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This summer, let’s deepen our Christian life. Which CLC Publications would you add to your summer 2022 booklist? Let us know in the comments below!
